Discover the secret to recreating Old-Fashioned Ollieburgers at home: a unique marinating process that locks in juiciness and flavor.
Copycat Lum’s Ollieburger Recipe
There are several recipes here on Granny’s in the Kitchen that are recreations of foods from the favorite restaurants of my childhood. When I was a teenager, our family had a favorite restaurant that we occasionally went to called Lum’s. At that time, I thought it was unique to our area but in working on this recipe I discovered that it was actually part of a chain.
When Mom (Granny) and Dad would take my sister and I to Lum’s, there was only one thing I would order: The Ollieburger, with fries, of course.
Just writing about this amazing burger makes me hungry for one! It was so good! And for years I would try and recreate it at home with disappointing results. I knew it had a lot of seasoning, so I would add lots of herbs and spices to my burger mix but it never tasted quite right.
It turns out there is a secret to the Ollie Burgers: there are no seasonings mixed into the burger, but rather, it is marinated. The ground beef is seasoned by marinating in a flavorful sauce for 12 hours before cooking. The seasonings aren’t in the burger, instead they soak into it over a period of hours.
This makes the recipe very different than you usual hamburgers, and the end result truly shows it. Ollieburgers are thick and juicy in the middle, with a perfectly seared crust, topped with a tangy Thousand Island type dressing and melty cheese.
This is something you could assemble in the morning, marinate all day, and then have it ready to cook for dinner. Trust me, it will be worth the wait! –Sara
Ingredients
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For the Burgers and Fixins’
- 2 pounds ground beef
- Thousand Island dressing
- Mozzarella cheese
For the Marinade
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon A1 steak sauce
- 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon oil (any light cooking oil will work)
- 1/2 cup beef broth or beef bone broth
- 1 teaspoon Heinz 57 sauce
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
Helpful Kitchen Tools
Instructions
- Make the Marinade – Add the marinade ingredients to a small bowl and whisk to combine.
- Form the Patties – Shape the ground beef into round patties about 3/4 inches thick and 3 1/2 inches in diameter and place them in a glass or stainless steel container in a single layer.
- Marinate the Burgers – Pour the marinade over the burgers and refrigerate for 8-12 hours, turning occasionally.
- Cook the Burgers – To cook, remove the burger patties from the marinade and sear over high heat to seal in the juices. Then reduce the heat and cook to your desired doneness.
Homemade Thousand Island Dressing
Here’s an easy thousand island dressing recipe you can use if you prefer homemade over store-bought dressing. Mix together the following ingredients:
- 1 cup of mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup minced yellow onion
- 2 TB ketchup
- 2 TB sweet pickle relish
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Prep Tips
- Seasoning – If you like your burgers to have a more concentrated flavor, double all of the marinade ingredients except for the broth.
- Cheese – The traditional cheese used was mozzarella, but I also like my burger with Swiss cheese, so I used that here. You can use either type of cheese.
- Serve with – I plated the burgers just the way I remember them, with a slice of cheese and a heaping dollop of Thousand Island style dressing. You can of course add any of your favorite hamburger toppings, such as lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, etc.
More Ground Beef Recipes To Try:
- West Virginia Hot Dog Sauce
- Southern Baked Beans
- Old-Fashioned Meatloaf with Oatmeal
- Tex-Mex Enchiladas
- Porcupine Meatballs
- Rotel Dip
- Granny’s Vegetable Beef Soup
- Easy Homemade Lasagna
- No Bean Chili
- Ground Beef Stroganoff
Lum’s Ollieburger Recipe (Printable Recipe Card)
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Lum's Ollieburger Recipe
Equipment
- Casserole dish
- large skillet
- Mixing bowls
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- Thousand Island dressing optional
- Mozzarella cheese optional
Marinade
- 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons seasoned salt
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon A1 sauce
- 1 Tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 Tablespoon oil
- ½ cup beef broth
- 1 teaspoon Heinz 57 sauce
- 1 teaspoon vinegar
Instructions
- Whisk together the marinade ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
- Form the ground beef into round patties about ¾ inches thick and 3 ½ inches in diameter.
- Place patties into a glass or stainless container in a single layer.
- Pour marinade over the burgers and refrigerate for 8-12 hours, turning occasionally.
- Remove burger patties from marinade and sear over high heat to seal in the juices.
- Turn down heat and cook to your desired doneness.
Notes
- Seasoning - If you like your burgers to have a more concentrated flavor, double all of the marinade ingredients except for the broth.
- Cheese - Ollieburgers are traditionally topped with mozzarella, but you can use your favorite or omit.
- Serve with - I plated the burgers just the way I remember them, with a slice of cheese and a heaping dollop of Thousand Island style dressing. You can of course add any of your favorite hamburger toppings, such as lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, etc.
- 1 cup of mayonnaise
- 1/4 cup minced yellow onion
- 2 TB ketchup
- 2 TB sweet pickle relish
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Pin our copycat Ollie Burger recipe on Pinterest:
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PS, I never saw or ate an Ollie burger with thousand island dressing. Not at Lums, not at Ollie’s. I lived in Miami when Lums was in its’ heyday, and I went hundreds of times over the years. Early on they also made a killer sub and some tasty fried clams! Sadly there are no longer decent semi-fast food places, especially reasonably priced places. The worst thing is that even a pricey “joint” is a long way from capturing the “MAGIC”.